The 2024 conversation has been driven by a handful of names. Trump. Harris. Biden. Vance. Walz. These individuals have put themselves forward to lead our government. But who really is our government? What is it made of? And what is at stake when politicians say they want to expand or dismantle it?
To find out, Washington Post Opinions sent seven stellar writers loose on the federal bureaucracy. Their only brief was to go where they wanted, talk with whomever they wanted, and return with a story from deep within the vast, complex system Americans pay for, rebel against, rely upon, dismiss and celebrate.
Read more from our series here:
* [**The Canary**](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2024/michael-lewis-chris-marks-the-canary-who-is-government/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com)**:** Michael Lewis on the Department of Labor
* [**The Sentinel**](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2024/casey-cep-ronald-walters-the-sentinel-who-is-government/)**:** Casey Cep on the Department of Veterans Affairs
* [**The Searchers**](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2024/dave-eggers-jet-propulsion-laboratory-nasa-who-is-government/)**:** Dave Eggers on the NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab
* [**The Number**](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2024/john-lanchester-consumer-price-index-who-is-government/?itid=sf_opinions_guest-opinions_p007_f001)**:** John Lanchester on the Bureau of Labor Statistics
* [**The Cyber Sleuth**](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2024/cyber-sleuth/)**:** Geraldine Brooks on the Internal Revenue Service
* [**The Equalizer**](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2024/sarah-vowell-national-archives-digitization-records-smartphones/?itid=hp_opinions_p001_f015)**:** Sarah Vowell on the National Archives
* **The Rookie:** W. Kamau Bell on the Department of Justice (coming later this month)
Michael Lewis is the author, most recently, of “Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon.” His other works include “Moneyball,” “The Big Short” and “The Fifth Risk,” which focuses on the functioning of the federal government.
Proof photo: [https://imgur.com/a/PR9ibWs](https://imgur.com/a/PR9ibWs)
Source: washingtonpost
30 Comments
How do you respond to the perception that Going Infinite is basically an SBF hagiography?
What do financial industry experts think about Trump’s approach to tariffs?
How do you feel about the A’s moving to Las Vegas? No amount of Moneyball can overcome greedy owners.
Thanks for the AMA. The Big Short is one of my favorite movies. Thanks for making that.
Which presidential candidate is better at getting on base? And how about getting out their base?
Many have said that you had an overly-charitable view of Sam Bankman-Fried because you were easily taken in by the “unconventional genius” narrative he cultivated. Moving forward, do you have any plans to be more skeptical of people who portray themselves as one of these unconventional geniuses?
Michael, Moneyball is obviously an all-time great book. However, do you think the central tenet of the book has seeped too much into every facet of culture? It seems like every industry has now opted for a moneyball style approach (especially sports), putting optimization and cost-cutting above all else. It obviously works when it comes to the intended goal but there are plenty of trade-offs. I was wondering if you think this is mostly a good thing or mostly detrimental.
What do you think of the idea that Elon Musk is gonna come in and eliminate all the government waste like he did with twitter? Is that even plausible? Would it be a good thing?
Re: “Who really is our government, and what is it made of?”
Would you please run an analysis of *just how overwhelmingly white* the vote is for Republican Senators, and in particular for the 41 Senators it takes to sustain a filibuster or the 50 it takes to confirm a SCOTUS justice?
For example – states like Idaho, North and South Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska, Utah, and Kansas are 90+% white to begin with. It can be assumed a significant portion of their non-white populations vote for the Democratic candidate.
We’ve seen studies that the 41 GOP Senators it takes to sustain a filibuster come from states that represent just 17% of the population. It is never drilled down from there as to *just how overwhelmingly white* the populations of those states are and hence the *overwhelmingly white* votes these Senators got elected with.
I believe this deserves attention, and I believe you’re just the type to pull it off. Cheers.
if I buy this fuckin’ bond in a fuckin’ trade will i still get my fuckin’ face ripped off?
Loved *The Premonition*.
Do you have any plans to write more books about public health responses? Because I would pounce on that like my dog on a piece of cheese.
What’s the stupidest question you’ve ever seen on one of these AMA’s?
What do you think of crypto/NFTs and the amount/lack of regulation? Guys like Mark Cuban still push crypto even though it seems borderline sketchy.
In retrospect, were there any cracks or giveaways within FTX operationally that would have suggested SBF was running such a ramshackle operation? Seems wild any entity taking in that much funding would have a staff that small with no accounting or even bookkeeping function, or other operations staff, let alone no external auditor.
How can I use Moneyball to win my fantasy hockey pool?
What do you believe is the most significant risk to a second Trump administration?
I’m a huge Browns fan. But I don’t hear much about the success that Paul Depodesta has had in football. Do you think his football experiences will be as compelling to write about as his baseball experiences were?
Is Peter Todd Satoshi or not?
I’m mildly curious on a few thoughts, so I’m going to ask some questions that aren’t necessarily directly related to the federal government.
1. Do you think there’s any information we aren’t paying enough attention to in regards to implications for the election?
2. Do you have an expected timeline for automation, or the response to it (UBI et al)?
3. What departments or agencies do you think could use reform or disbanding?
4. Underestimated or studied area of future import?
When picking subjects, how do you balance the desires for picking a representative person vs an aspirational person vs an entertaining person vs an iconoclastic person etc?
What role, if any, did moneyball play in the Deshaun Watson trade?
You called Michael Oher the adopted son of Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy in your book The Blind Side, but in truth they never adopted him — instead setting up a conservatorship that deprived him of financial opportunities and full control of his life for the next 20 years.
Do you have any regrets about missing the story of what was really going on there? An 18-year-old man with no physical or physiological disabilities didn’t need to give the Tuohys “all powers of attorney” over his life. Their decisions look extremely exploitive in hindsight.
What are some lesser known examples where data analytics is used to make decisions on and off the field in football? It seems like football is harder to apply analytics than baseball.
What are the biggest character flaws of the protagonist of each of your books
Did you watch the Cullen Hobeck HBO movie about who the original creator of Bitcoin is, and how convincing was his conclusion to you that is was Peter Todd?
Who are you voting for for president?
“watched in wonder as data disappeared across the federal government…..removing the most powerful tool for understanding” – with so much misinformation and failing trust in faith in our institutions – What can any of us do to prevent the politicization of the truth? How can we get better info – and is there any chance we can have mission driven government agencies – instead of success changing with every political election?
How do feel about the film Moneyball’s depiction of the relationship between Billy Beane and Art Howe?
When did you realize, whilst researching *Going Infinite*, that the story was taking a wild twist.
How would you describe the “typical” worker within the United States’ federal bureaucracy? What would his or her composite image and profile look like?